I thought the 15 day trial of acronis didn't let you make bootable media? So how would you get an image without loggin into windows? Or am I missunderstanding the issue (sounds to me like someone wants an image of it before accepting the EULA).

Care to elaborate? I've made a backup of the original Dell HDD image using acronis, then used the image to create a copy of the factory hdd, vista worked on the copy but MediaDirect didn't. Every time I try booting computer using mediadirect button it takes me to vista and launches media direct there instead of going to the mediadirect partition. THe original, of course, works just fine, but the copy is screwed up.

I dont really understand... if the original backup disk works fine then it performed correctly no?

Next, although I havent used Acronis in3-4 months, I recall it doing the exact backup you want. If you want a complete system backup, it will give you exactly that. When I tested it and then restored the Acronis System Image after its expiry date, it worked perfect (and this was with a MD3/Vista/XP boot setup.

You seem to be describing that you only backed up the OS or that you created a backup of the factory Image and then tried to back that up from disk once again?.

i backed up the whole thing. WHen I made a copy of the drive using the image or using the cloning, either way the MediaDirect partition got disabled. Acronis does not do it's job of copying the MBR properly or something, 'cause the MediaDirect partition hook up gets broken.

Interesting... I made a backup of one of my vostro drives specifically to get the working MD partition. Now it's a bit fuzzy exactly what steps I took (because I have done so many) but I am pretty sure the full HD Backup I did with Acronis restored a working MD partition.

In fact I used that exact feature to get MD working on my Vostro that, for whatever reason, would not install MD right using the MD restore CD by imaging the working drive, then putting that image on the drive of the one that didn't work.